Saturday, January 31, 2009

Papua New Guinea took a step closer to qualifying for the ICC Cricket World Cup when it thrashed Hong Kong by nine wickets on a rain affected day at the Pepsi ICC World Cricket League Division 3.

But Afghanistan's and Uganda's dream of playing in world's cricket biggest one-day event remains alive after rain saved both sides from precarious positions in Buenos Aires on Friday and forced both games to be abandoned.

While Uganda's match against Argentina was abandoned with the African side 69-4 in the first innings of the game, Afghanistan enjoyed an even luckier escape after Cayman Islands' run chase was thwarted when it needed just 28 more runs for victory following a torrential downpour.

PNG coach Martin Gleeson, whose team now tops the table with eight points, was delighted with the performance of his side and admitted it will be a nervous day tomorrow following the fortunes of the two other matches.

With the top two sides at this event earning a place in the ICC Cricket World Cup Qualifier, if Afghanistan and Uganda both win its matches tomorrow it will be net run rate that is used to determine final group placings as the top three teams will all have won four matches at this event.

"Today was a completely different performance to Wednesday. I thought we needed to stand up collectively and show a bit of character and the boys responded really well and showed a bit of character," said Gleeson.

"There were no individual stars with the bowling – it was just a really good all-round performance.

"Our batting focus was on knocking off the runs as quickly as possible, hitting the ball and not slogging it. I think we showed that we can score six or seven runs an over with the bat.

"We will just have to see how the other matches end up."

Hong Kong, who started play with an outside chance of finishing in the top two of the competition, never recovered from a disastrous start and was eventually dismissed for 9x all out, with Loa Nou the pick of the bowlers with 3-14.

And openers Vani Morea (41 not out off 30 balls) and Chris Amini (38 off 44 balls) provided an explosive reply to reach its revised victory target, due to the rain, transforming Papua New Guinea's net run rate which had been seriously damaged following Wednesday's crushing defeat to Afghanistan.

Kabir Khan, Afghanistan coach, admitted that his side were extremely lucky to escape from a defeat against Cayman Islands after a dramatic finish to their match.

Afghanistan got off to a terrible start against Cayman Islands losing openers Shafiqullah Shafaq and Karim Khan when the score was on 17. Further wickets followed, with Rais Ahmadzai and Mohammad Nabi falling within the space of four balls to Saheed Mohammed, leaving the Afghans, who started the day's play, struggling on 47-5. Skipper Narooz Mangal (26 not out) then led a mini recovery to 68-5 off 31 overs, before rain halted proceedings, until early evening sunshine finally allowed play to resume with Cayman Islands set a target of 63 off 20 overs under the D/L method. Although Ainsley Hall fell in the opening over, three fours in one Hamid Hassan over by Keneil Irving looked to have set Cayman Islands on the way to a shock victory. But rain, was to be Afghanistan's saviour, as a late downpour left the umpires with no choice but to take the players off the field forcing the abandonment of the game.

"I nearly had another heart attack. I think I need to say thank you to God as he has been very kind to us today. We needed it to rain and it did," said Kabir.

"We have to play better tomorrow as PNG has already won its game and Uganda has a very good chance of winning their game as well, so we need to win and with a good run rate as well."

"It is very disappointing but there is nothing we can do about it. I thought we looked very comfortable today, but we will have to see what happens tomorrow," said Theo Cuffy, coach of Cayman Islands.

"I am confident, but tomorrow is just another day, but we will try our best. I thought our bowlers really stuck to their plans today and it is just unfortunate about the weather." In the other match of the day, Argentina finally found some form in this tournament when it reduced Uganda to 69-4 before rain also forced the match to be abandoned. Tomorrow's rankings play-off matches are now cancelled and will be replaced by the replayed matches between Argentina and Uganda (at Belgrano) and Afghanistan and Cayman Islands (at Corimayo).

If true, it has not only relegated PNG’s diplomatic practices to the whims of subversive elements, but has also brought into question the country’s “One-China policy”.

PNG has benefited much from this policy through development aid and direct investments.

To some observers the scandal only propagates an evolving norm of frivolous attitudes and self-interests of some PNG diplomats.

Unfortunately, past scandals have not been properly addressed by the Government and the departments concerned.

For the people of PNG, this alleged scandal militates against national interests. The public can only despairingly talk of having to see another diplomatic blunder, like “a dog going back to its vomit, every time a PNG plenipotentiary is sent abroad.

Article 2 of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations (VCDR), 1961 states: The establishment of diplomatic relations between states, and of permanent diplomatic missions, takes place by mutual consent.

This simply means that only a State bestowed with the principles of “sovereignty” under International Law, namely, non-intervention, equality and immunity can engage in diplomatic relations.

In my opinion, Taiwan is an integral part of China.

The ongoing struggle by the Taiwanese people to be politically independent is a domestic matter for the government of China.

It was ill-conceived for PNG representatives to covertly negotiate with Taiwanese counterparts.

Any State by virtue of its sovereignty has the right to give diplomatic recognition to Taiwan irrespective of China’s stand.

But it is inconceivable and a “shot in the foot” for PNG to covertly give diplomatic recognition to Taiwan whilst concurrently flagging the “One-China Policy”.

Or does the PNG Government plan a diplomatic shift from China to Taiwan?

Arrangements of diplomatic representations between States in the post-WWII era take place overtly within the framework of the Vienna convention.

For example, Articles 3 to 5 provide for the functions of diplomatic missions, formalities of accreditations and recognition of types of representations.

Diplomatic relations are governed by International Law, treaties, conventions and acceptable practices based on the principles of “sovereignty” and only applicable to states.

The initial willingness of PNG negotiators to covertly arrange for Taiwan’s diplomatic recognition derogates from the intent and spirit of the VCDR.

If indeed PNG does give diplomatic recognition to Taiwan, the country would very likely be slapped with economic sanctions by China. Our PNG negotiators seem to have ignored such basic analysis of costs and benefits.

On a broader level, we need to look at the benefits and challenges posed by China’s pre-eminence in world politics.

America’s “financial-meltdown” has sent rippling effects across the world, especially the industrialised West and the developing and developed Asian countries.

Whilst China is to some extent facing the turbulence, it has shown admirable degree of resilience in the way it has managed its domestic and foreign policies.

China is becoming a global economic power.

Its presence in the Pacific has been greeted with befuddled reaction by Australia and the US where security is concerned.

PacificIsland countries, including PNG, must exploit opportunities to gain economically with China and diversify from it.

South Pacific regional trade dynamics, whether bilateral or multilateral, will no doubt continue to be influenced by China’s involvement as a pivotal infusion for expansion.

China is one of PNG’s major development partners apart from Australia, Britain, European Union and Japan.

Our Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, therefore, needs to be more vigilant in the way it manages its diplomats and others entrusted to deal with China.

The PNG-Taiwan dollar-diplomacy has no substance of national interests other than to serve the interests of a few.

More than 30 years ago, a gentleman by the name of Harold Nicolson once said: “The policy of cabinet can only be rightly executed by man of experience, integrity and intelligence; by man of resource, good temper and courage.

“A man above all, who is not swayed by emotion or prejudice, who is profoundly modest in all his dealings for they guarantee moral ascendancy, truthfulness, precision.

“A man who is guided only by a sense of public duty and who understands the value of cleverness and the virtues of reason, moderation, discretion, patience and tact.”

These qualities are indispensable prerequisites for the exercise of diplomatic profession even in this age of information technology and private competition.

Most PNG diplomats, politicians and senior public servants in relevant departments entrusted to negotiate internationally are doing a fine job.

The diplomatic blunders created in the recent past including the current Taiwan scandal have been caused by few individuals.Let us not lose face again. Diplomats must put the country first. Not their self-interests.

Note:The writer is a lecturer in International Relations and Diplomatic Practices and Procedures at the University of PNG.

A 40-YEAR-old man accused of practising sorcery was chopped to death outside Goroka in the Eastern Highlands province last weekend, a barbaric killing that only came to light yesterday, The Nationalreports.

The man was allegedly taken before a kangaroo court that comprised church pastors and village court officials, pronounced guilty and taken away to be chopped to death by a group of men armed with bush knives.

The killing occurred at a village in Unggai-Bena district last Friday, and shocked National Doctors Association president, Dr Kauve Pomat, who was in the village at the time.

An eyewitness, who gathered the victim’s mutilated remains and buried them, identified the deceased as John Ogono from Fayantina in Henganofi district.

Mr Ogono had migrated to Kopafo village in Unggai-Bena district to live there.

Dr Pomat, who is from the area, yesterday confirmed to this reporter that he was present at the “court hearing” to determine whether the accused was actually practicing sorcery.

“I was there at the hearing, but when he (deceased) was removed, I left. Being a doctor and a life-saver, I was emotionally bogged down and deeply saddened,” Dr Pomat said.

He said he tried in vain to plead and negotiate with the villagers to spare the man’s life.

Dr Pomat said he did not witness the actual killing, but later heard about how it was done and was horrified.

The eyewitness who spoke to The National said Lampo villagers who live between Goroka and Henganofi, near the Okuk Highway, alleged that the deceased and another person were sorcerers and went after them.

He said 10 youths including a village peace officer went to Kopafo village at around 4am last Friday and picked up Mr Ogono, his wife, his teenage son and an another man while they were asleep in their house.

“They took them to Siguyagu creek before releasing the wife, son and the other man. They took Ogono (deceased) to the village and interrogated him in a hastily convened court comprising four church pastors, a peace officer, and a village court chairman,” the eyewitness, who declined to be identified in fear of his life, said.

He said at around 11am, the villagers led by a prominent village leader (named) interrogated Ogono, forcing him to admit to practicing sorcery.

The deceased’s last words, according to the eyewitness, were: “In the eyes of the leaders, only God knows, I am innocent.” He spoke the words in the local dialect.

Before he could finish, a young man standing close to him kicked him, and as he fell down, he was kicked in his jaws.

“Youths all armed with bush knives dragged him away and chopped him to pieces,” the eyewitness said.

The pastors are from the Four Square, Lutheran, Baptist and Seventh Day Adventist (SDA) churches. The peace officer and the village court chairman have been identified to police.

The eyewitness said the same group of youths that killed the man went to Kintunu village the next day (Saturday) and took away another person they accused of being a sorcerer.

Sehupa Trimek, 25, was tortured and was slowly being put to death when Dr Pomat intervened.

As they were in the process of torturing him by pushing a red-hot iron rod into his body and started inflicting knife wounds, Dr Pomat intervened and appealed to them to stop.

The attackers heeded his plea and released the accused, demanding K5, 000 and two pigs from him. The villagers claimed he (Trimek) had gone to Lae and placed a leaf under the bed of one of their relatives working there, the eyewitness said.

Placing a fresh leaf under someone’s bed is viewed as an attempt to take someone’s life through sorcery.

Dr Pomat confirmed that he sent word to the group of youths not to torture and kill Trimek, and they released him.

According to the eyewitness, the whole village was warned not to report the matter to police. But the eyewitness decided to speak out to reporters in Goroka yesterday.

Eastern Highlands provincial police commander Chief Supt Teddy Tei, when contacted yesterday, said they police had not received any report of such a killing, but would now launch an investigation.

Two wickets by Ronald Ssemanda in the final over of a sensational match against Hong Kong handed Uganda a dramatic one-run win in the Pepsi ICC World Cricket League Division 3.

With Afghanistan ending Papua New Guinea’s unbeaten run at the tournament after an inspired performance by stand-in captain Karim Khan, three teams now sit level on points after the fourth round of matches.

And despite the agony of the defeat, Hong Kong still remains in contention at this tournament, although it will be reliant on some shock results if it is achieve a top-two finish.

This means four sides go into Friday’s final group matches with the potential to win one of the two remaining spots at the ICC Cricket World Cup Qualifier in April on what should be an exciting finale to the group stages of the event.

Should teams be tied on equal points and equal wins in the round-robin matches, places will be determined by who has the higher net run-rate, and if the teams are still equal the team with the higher number of wickets taken per balls bowled in the round-robin matches in which results were achieved will be placed in the higher position.

Uganda’s man of the match Kenneth Kamyuka, who followed up yet another valuable contribution with the bat in the lower-order with four wickets, admitted that his side had turned around what had looked like an impossible situation when Hong Kong was 160-5 with almost five overs remaining and paid tribute to his coach, Ebrahim Mohamed, for the side’s tough mental resolve.

“The coach has helped us with these situations by working on the mental side of our game. He has told us we should be soldiers and fight to the last ball,” said Kamyuka.

“I enjoy bowling when there is a lot of pressure on the batsmen.”

Needing just 21 runs for victory, with five wickets in hand and 27 balls remaining, Hong Kong looked all set for victory, after an 84-run third-wicket partnership from Butt Hussain (52) and Manoj Cheruparambil (51) had helped it recover from the loss of two early wickets.

But inspired bowling from Kamyuka and Ssemanda created one of the most memorable finishes to a game in the history of the Pepsi ICC World Cricket League.

With just three runs required for victory in the final over, Ssemanda first dismissed Zain Abbas (35) before Jamie Atkinson was trapped lbw with Hong Kong one run short of its target.

Earlier in the day, Roger Mukasa’s 67 provided the foundation for Uganda’s 180 all out, with Moner Ahmed the pick of the bowlers with 4-30.

“I didn’t give up hope as we have been in these type of situations before and from the moment we got a couple of late wickets, there was always a chance and we were determined to fight until the last ball,” said Ebrahim Mohamed, Uganda coach.

His opposite number, Aftab Habib, admitted that he was devastated by the result but was extremely proud of the effort put in by his side.

“To be honest we were cruising the game and then all of a sudden we lost five wickets for 19 runs. We weren’t quite good enough, but I’m proud of the guys and the amount of effort they put in,” said Habib.

“There was pressure through the whole of the game and the boys felt a bit hard done by in the end.”

Afghanistan stand-in captain Karim Khan led the way for his team with an outstanding individual display in a comfortable eight-wicket win over PNG and believes his side is well placed to win Friday’s fixture against Cayman Islands.

“I am very proud that I captained my country, took six catches and scored a 50, so I am very happy. I am also pleased we have helped our net run-rate and hopefully we go out and win on Friday,” said Karim.

“We beat Cayman Islands in a practice match before this tournament and we have our captain coming back for this match so I am hopeful that we can win.

“It is my dream to get my very poor country to the World Cup. All of our people want to watch our country play in the tournament and watch the games live on television.”

PNG chose to bat first despite the fact overnight rain had made conditions tricky for batting in on what was a humid, overcast day in Buenos Aires. And there may have been some regret there as the team slumped to 29-4, a mess from which it never full recovered as it was eventually dismissed for 93 in 31 overs.

Fast bowler Hamid Hassan’s gradual improvement in the tournament continued with a three-wicket haul, although it was a strong all-round bowling display from Afghanistan, well supported behind the stumps by Karim Khan.

With net run-rate likely to come into contention on Friday in deciding who will finish in the top two of the table, Afghanistan played in typically aggressive fashion and Karim’s 43-ball 50, which included eight fours, ensured that the match ended even before the lunch interval was due.

“We let ourselves down in the batting and it was always going to be hard to defend a small total like that,” said PNG captain Rarua Dikana.

“We need to work hard on our batting and if we put on a good score we should be able to defend it given our bowling strength. We have been quietly confident throughout and hopefully we will do well on Friday.”

Meanwhile, Argentina skipper Esteban MacDermott admitted he was desperately disappointed after the host lost to Cayman Islands by six wickets.

The fourth consecutive defeat in this tournament means his side is now relegated to the WCL Div. 4 but MacDermott vowed that his team was determined to respond in a positive manner.

“We will have to adapt and face up to the situation we are in and we will look to get promotion from Division 4,” said MacDermott.

“The tournament is not over yet and we owe it to the people who come to watch our matches and we owe it to ourselves to do our best in our last two games.”

A hard-hitting innings from opener Lucas Paterlini (70) got Argentina off to an excellent start in its innings but once again a middle-order collapse was to prove costly as it only managed a disappointing 165 all out.

In reply, an excellent knock from Ramon Sealy (66 not out) was enough to bring his side home and give the Cayman Islands its first win at the event.

“It’s good to get a win at this event. We were always confident of reaching the target as it wasn’t that big a total but it was nice to get a victory,” said Sealy.

Thursday, January 29, 2009

The latest testing has confirmed InterOil's Antelope-1 exploration well has tapped into the deepest subterranean gas reservoir discovered in Papua New Guinea to date.

It is now confirmed the reservoir has a vertical section of 962 metres (3,156 feet) in the onshore reef.

InterOil Chief Executive Officer, Phil Mulacek has described the results of the latest testing as "The signs are very encouraging and supports a third reservoir type on the onshore trend with the Elk-Antelope structures".

Porosity averages more than 8.4% across the entire vertical section, with some sections exceeding 20%.

The cumulative net or productive reservoir has a net to gross ratio of 90%.

Further tests are to be carried out at Antelope-1 to better ascertain gas volume and the pressure at which it can be delivered.

"Additional drilling and testing activity may be conducted before the full flow tests are performed", Mr. Mulacek said.

Antelope-1 is the third major gas strike InterOil has made in its prospecting site in the Gulf Province and the first confirming gas from an on-shore reef.

Two nearby wells, Elk-1 and Elk-4 both returned the highest gas flow rates of any gas discovery ever made in the country.

Both were evaluated at more than 100 million cubic feet of gas per day, with cumulative flow rate capacity of 207 million cubic feet of gas per day.

The company now intends to run a vertical seismic profile with the well under pressure.

This will be followed by a series of drill stem tests on the lower sections of the well bore and other zones of interest.

These tests will

Tie the wellbore directly to seismic data,

Evaluate the newly drilled section, and

Determine the level of the lowest known hydrocarbons, if not yet encountered by the extended drilling program.

It is expected that gas from the Elk-Antelope structures would feed the proposed Liquid Niugini Gas project (of which InterOil is a foundation partner).

The proposed project would be a major windfall for the PNG economy and make a significant contribution to the nation's GDP in years to come.

Caption: Highlands fresh carrots sold at Lae marketStory and picture by JOSEPHINE YAGAThe Papua New Guinea fresh produce sector has great potential in generating export revenue. It is also an important source of cash income for highlands farmers if the functioning of the supply chain is improved.However, the sector at present is not organised to provide reliable supplies of consistent quality produce and this is compounded with no effective quality control system in place. This is according to a recent National Agriculture Research Institute publication Think Locally before Going Global: Understanding the Consumer Preferences of Fresh Produce in Papua New Guinea. The technical bulletin, written by research economists Norah Omot and Jesse Anjen of NARI and Professor John Spriggs of University of Canberra, says that in order for the PNG fresh produce industry to effectively compete on the export market, it is essential to improve the functioning of the supply chain.The bulletin was published in August 2007 following a survey funded by the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR), which was carried out in major supermarkets of Lae and Port Moresby.The study focused on improving the formal marketing system for fresh produce in PNG. The publication, which provides valuable information on fresh produce and markets in the country, says fresh produce grown under temperate climate in the highlands has an excellent reputation for quality.PNG can take advantage of rapidly involving global opportunities.Agriculture exports are viewed as an important alternative source of export revenue as royalties from the mining sector begin to diminish.Thus, improving the domestic marketing system for the highland fresh produce is a matter of urgency.But lack of proper handling, storage and most importantly, formal domestic marketing system for fresh produce are issues needed to be addressed by the government.“If agriculture is to achieve the National Government’s objective on export-driven economic growth, rural development, poverty reduction and empowerment through human resource development through the Medium Term Development Strategy (MTDS) 2005-2010, there needs to be an improvement in the formal domestic marketing system for fresh produce before casting its sights further a field to the export market,” according to the report.Consumers, both at the highlands and coastal markets, prefer the quality of local fresh produce more that those imported.However, the poorly-developed marketing system for locally-grown fresh produce, results in inconsistent quality and unreliable supply.The publication says besides filling the gap that is currently being inadequately served by imports, improving the local industry will also provide a springboard for the successful export of fresh produce grown locally in PNG to the rest of the world. The publication is currently selling at K5.Meanwhile, socio-economic studies are currently underway to find avenues that can help improve marketing systems of fresh produce in PNG.One such study, funded by ACIAR, is a collaborative research project on improving the marketing efficiency, post-harvest management and value addition of sweet potato in PNG.The project is being carried out by NARI, the Fresh Produce Development Agency and partners from PNG and Australia.

Afghanistan was the early winners at the Pepsi ICC World Cricket League Division 4 after a stunning 8-wicket victory over Papua New Guinea (PNG) in Buenos Aires on Wednesday.

PNG, who were unbeaten in the tournament going into this match, crumbled to 94 all out with Hamid Hassan leading the demolition with 3-26.

And the match was finished before the players even had their lunch, when a quick-fire fifty from Karim Khan, who won the Man of the Match Award, helped his side to its target with 36.2 overs to spare.

“I am very proud that I captained my country, took six catches and scored a fifty, so I am very happy. I am also pleased we have helped our net run rate and hopefully we go out and win on Friday,” said Karim.

Almost 3, 000 people die every year in Papua New Guinea from TB and TB is the leading cause of death amongst people infected with HIV.

The first initiative of its kind, it is inviting members of the public to submit outstanding photos depicting TB prevention and treatment and community activity to raise awareness about it.

World Vision Pacific Development Group (WVPDG) operations director Curt von Boguslawski says he hopes the competition will increase community participation on a whole new creative level and hopefully bring a human face to the TB disease and the fight against it.

“We would also like to thank our sponsors - the Media Council of Papua New Guinea and Digicel - for their continued support and we look forward to seeing the entries,” he said.

Digicel chief executive officer PNG John Mangos said: “Digicel firmly believes in giving back to the communities in which it operates.

“Digicel is proud to back this World Vision initiative, which will both showcase photographic talent in PNG and more importantly, raise awareness of TB, which is a vital and often debilitating health issue for the people of this country.

“Digicel would also like to commend World Vision for its efforts in addressing this issue, and wish you the best for the future with this work.”

“We would like to encourage those who are enthusiastic photographers, both amateur and professional, and are 18years and over and not an affiliate of World Vision, its partners or stakeholders, to enter the competition.”

The winner will receive an award of K1, 500, second prize K800 and third prize K500.

There will also be six Digicel mobile phones to be awarded to all the prize winners including three consolation prizes for three other photographs as runner-up to the grand prize.

In culmination of World TB day celebrations on Mar 24, an exhibition will be held in the NCD and other provinces.

Hence, these photographic images pertaining to TB related issues, will help to embrace the effort to promote greater awareness as they will have come from the eyes of the public themselves.

For further information on the competition contact Kristine Kepore at WVPDC on tele phone 311 2530. facsimile 325 4225 or email Kristine_Kepore@wvi.org.

Jamie Brazier’s four wickets helped Papua New Guinea secure its place at the top of the Pepsi ICC World Cricket League Division 3 after a surprise 26-run win over Uganda.

And with Afghanistan and Hong Kong also recording victories on a dramatic day of action in Buenos Aries, the race to secure the two remaining places at the ICC Cricket World Cup Qualifier is wide open.

Martin Gleeson, coach of Papua New Guinea, was delighted that his side secured one of the surprise wins of the day, after defeating previous Division 3 champions Uganda in a tightly fought contest at Belgrano.

“It was a great result for us. There is still a bit of work to do and there is some room for improvement, but we have got the bowling right,” said Gleeson.

“We are very disciplined and we have worked very hard on our bowling. We have good variety, with pace, spin and some medium-pace and have worked on getting the right line and length.

But Gleeson was also keen to play down the fact his side is potentially one win from securing a place in the ICC Cricket World Cup Qualifier, although it still has Afghanistan and Hong Kong to play.

“We’re not getting ahead of ourselves at this stage. We still have Afghanistan and Hong Kong to play so we plan to continue just taking each game day by day,” said Gleeson.

“Afghanistan will provide a big test and after a little bit of a stumble, they seem to be gathering momentum and I think it should be a great match.”

Papua New Guinea recovered from the loss of two early wickets against Uganda to post a respectable target, with Peter Moide holding the innings together with 43 not out off 83 balls.

However, credit should go to the Ugandan bowlers who managed to close out the PNG innings with good effective bowling, reducing it from 126-5 with more than 11 overs of the innings remaining to 165 all out.

In reply, Uganda also looked to be cruising at 67-2 but once Arthur Kyobe (33) was dismissed by four-wicket hero Jamie Brazier, the middle-order crumbled and even a last wicket stand of 28 could not deny Papua New Guinea victory, with Kenneth Kamyuka, who had earlier taken three wickets, left stranded on 34 not out.

Kamyuka disheartened by defeat

Uganda opening bowler Kenneth Kamyuka said that his side was extremely disappointed with the 26-run defeat to Papua New Guinea.

“We are very disheartened as we should have won the match. We took winning for granted and that is something we spoke about in the team meeting,” said Kamyuka.

“We relaxed too much, dropped some easy catches and played some bad shots.”

Uganda who face Hong Kong on Thursday, who beat Cayman Islands on Wednesday, now face a battle to finish in the top two at the tournament, but Kamyuka still believes his side will win a place at the ICC Cricket World Cup Qualifier.

“I am sure that we will win tomorrow and again on Friday,” he added.

Afghanistan coach Kabir Khan praised the spirit of his team after yet another dramatic victory, narrowly scraping past Argentina by 19 runs.

“The best thing about our team is that they are fighting back when the game seems to be slipping out of our hands,” said Kabir.

“They never give up, they just keep on fighting, and that is the true Afghan spirit.”

Argentina put Afghanistan, who were missing skipper Narooz Mangal following his two-match suspension, under early pressure and consistently broke down partnerships just as batsmen were beginning to threaten to be dangerous.

Opener Ahmad Shah top-scored with 44 in a disappointing total of 164 all out, the third consecutive time in this tournament that the side has failed to bat out the full 50 overs, as many as the star names in the Afghanistan side once again failed to perform to the best of their ability.

Argentina Player-coach Hamish Barton was in outstanding form, taking 3-12 off his 10 overs, including four consecutive maiden overs.

Opening the batting, it was Barton again who led the counter-attack opening Argentina’s innings, with an aggressive 33, but once he was out the frailness of the host team’s batting again was on show as it suffered a dramatic batting collapse, with the spin of Ahmad Shah (2-21) and Mohammad Nabi (2-24) causing problems.

But Argentina has a reputation for fighting hard and some powerful late order hitting from Diego Lord, who had earlier taken two wickets, meant for the third match in this event Afghanistan was facing a dramatic finish.

However, Lord was eventually run out attempting a second run, leaving the home side 19 runs short of its target.

The Afghan coach admitted it had been another nerve-wracking game to watch and that it proved the competitiveness of the Pepsi ICC World Cricket League Division 3.

“Anybody can beat anybody else in this tournament and that is why it is still wide open and we need to work hard to get our place in the final two,” said Kabir.

“If we can beat PNG it will gave us the confidence to go into the game against the tournament’s weakest team but the Cayman Islands have done really well in the last few years and you never know what they are going to do against us.”

In the other game of the day, Hong Kong handed Cayman Islands a third straight defeat, to keep Tabarak Dar’s dream of ICC Cricket World Cup Qualification alive.

Hong Kong posted a target of 210 all out off 46.3 overs, with Manoj Cheruparambil hitting an impressive 83, the highest individual score of the tournament so far, with good support from Roy Lamsam (60).

And a regular flurry of wickets saw Cayman Islands finally dismissed for 161 all out, 49 runs short of its target.

Tuesday, January 27, 2009

Kogl Kara Elementary School teacher Peter Kunjil was all dressed in his traditional attire and had his face painted in Mul-Baiyer, Western Highlands style, to mark the occasion of project launching and distribution of new vehicles to the Mul-Baiyer Lumusa district.Mr Kunjil, from Bukapena village, was among several others who decorated themselves in traditional attire and performed traditional dances to color the event.Mul-Baiyer MP and Internal Security Minister Sani Rambi initiated the launch of several projects and distributed nine vehicles to schools, health centres and district administrations.

Skerah.com - http://www.skerah.com/ - is one of the fastest growing entertainment and business websites in Papua New Guinea.It is owned and operated by Skerah Agencies, a 100% nationally-owned business.The business is managed by Roselyn Vai with the help of friends and family members with expertise in IT and entertainment.What initially started off as a fun idea to provide event and entertainment information has grown and attracted reputable businesses and event organisers to provide their event details for promotion on Skerah.com.“Our core business is to provide event information and entertainment opportunities to our targeted audience, both local and international, so that it is simple, easy and fun for them to find the information they want anywhere, anytime,” Ms Vai says,“We do not simply list any event but carefully choose events our target audience will appreciate.“Focus is on quality, well organised and entertaining, of course, events that can also attract corporate involvement.“The information and opportunities in Skerah.com is sourced from third parties and these are then published in a user-friendly and attractive form.“Our fortnightly e-newsletter reinforces the information and opportunities we have on Skerah.com while at the same time providing exclusive updated information to our subscribers.“Our objective is twofold:• Inform our audience in a easy and fun format to help them with their entertainment needs; and• Promote Papua New Guinea.”

My baby sister called me this morning at 5am when I was still sleeping asking me to send her 1, 300 Papua New Guinea Kina for her Grade 11 fee.

She cried on the phone.

I share the pain that she feels.

She wants a school because I am happy she knows that her future is secured through education.

Now, the school she will do her Grade 11 is in a trouble zone in Western Highlands province, Papua New Guinea.

I am so concerned about her safety.

I also know that the school does not have proper library, or just a building with no books.

No computers and other necessary staff you would expect in a school.

My dad is poor.

Including my mum.

I went to a school in the remote Tambul.

Woke up at 5am, roasted kaukau over the fire, had with cold water, no proper shower, torn clothes on my body, and attended Grade 1 to 6 at AlkenaPrimary School.

I was accepted to do Grade 7 at TambulHigh School.

When students from well to do family came with good clothes and shoes, I was with my same old dirty clothes, smelling of smoke from fire.

I tried so hard in school, have been to several countries, and am now in China.

Malum, what am I saying here?

Some of us are working very hard to be where we are, but where is the guarantee that we will get a better job?

And for those, like my poor sister whom I will pay her K1, 300 for a school fee, should be safe at the school with good facilities provided by the government.

Parents are paying huge sums of money for their children for better future, when yet, our politicians and well-to-do run down the country and consequently hate our education system and send their children overseas.

I went to school with some of these politician’s children in Japan, Fiji and now in China and you know what?

They are stupid; they do not know how to ask a question in class.

But when you talk about party, they are good and I think they are well-trained for service industries like hotels and tourism industries to be good PR people.

To get in touch with our Papua New Guinea cricket team in Argentina at the ICC World Cricket League Division 3 tournament – to either congratulate them or wish them luck – log on to www.skerah.com/pngmilobarra.htm

From there, you can send good luck messages to the team by completing the form in the page.

Julian Moti affair of October 2006 in which an international fugitive was spirited out of Port Moresby to Solomon Islands in a clandestine operation on a Papua New Guinea Defence Force aircraft, apparently ordered by the Prime Minister as revealed by the PNG Defence Commission of Inquiry;

Failed $US29.8 million (K85 million) Taiwan diplomacy scandal in which Papua New Guinea citizens are alleged to have received bribes. In May 2008, allegations were made of a government minister allegedly signing a draft communiqué for Papua New Guinea to set up “full diplomatic relations” with Taiwan in September 2006 in Port Moresby.

$US40 million (K145 million) in Singapore accounts, money from log exports, allegedly sitting in a bank account of a Papua New Guinea government figure and looked after by a “consortium” in that country;

Prime Minister allegedly not declaring his shareholding in Pacific Registry of Ships Ltd. The official registry showed Sir Michael is a shareholder “in trust for the Independent State of PNG”.

Prime Minister’s continued court actions to stop the Ombudsman Commission and the Public Prosecutor from performing their mandated duties on allegations of the Prime Minister not completing or providing annual returns since 1992.

School begins next week for thousands of young Papua New Guineas for whom the government has given a sub-standard education system.

While Prime Minister Sir Michael Somare and his cohorts can afford to send their children to expensive private schools in Australia and other countries, the majority of our people continue to suffer for lack of school fees for their children, and a sub-standard education system.

Sir Michael, now well past his use-by date, wanted independence so fast from Australia when Papua New Guinea wasn’t even prepared.

Now we are paying a costly price!

The country has churned out a whole generation of ill-educated, half-baked graduates from our education system,

Our health system has likewise floundered.

Sir Michael and his cohorts can afford expensive health services in Australia and other countries.

They don’t even trust our health system any more.

Health services were so much better in the 1970’s when we were under Australian rule.

Basically everything in this country has gone backward!

Now Sir Michael and his cohorts and children have bought expensive homes for themselves in Australia.

Achievements

Winner of the 2011 UNESCO/Divine Word University Award for Communication and Development.Archived in National Library of Australia PANDORA Archive. 1 million hits as of Friday, November 16, 2012; 2 million hits as of Monday, July 14, 2014; and growing...No. 1 Blog in Papua New Guinea